Where The Heart Is
by dawnofthedevon
Summary: Ramses was a dwarf, even if only by one half. She was not teased, she was respected. As the child of Dwalin she was known as such until she earned her own name. When Gandalf asks her to join Thorin's Company she could not decline. A chance to reclaim her home? Who wouldn't! Thorin/OC rated M for mature themes (I mean sex).
1. Chapter 1

There was _another _knock at the door. Bilbo let out a loud over exaggerated sigh as he scuttled to the door, tugging it open with a grunt. What he saw when it opened surprised him.

"Ramses, at your service." The voice was softer than silk and the skin paler than his mothers fine china.

Bilbo found himself staring into cat like eyes of a colour that could rival emeralds.

She laughed lightly as his jaw dropped. "Are you going to invite me in?"

"OH! Sorry! I-I didn't mean to-" Ramses laughed again. Her laugh was louder this time, the kind that could make anybody smile, the kind that filled the cool summer night air and made it warm.

"It's quite all right, sir. People always stare at my eyes like that."

"Come in!" Bilbo said ushering her inside his hobbit hole. As he was doing so he noticed that she was only a few inches taller than he was. She stood about two inches taller than him at the most.

She hung up her dark green travelling cloak and hood, and instinctively turned her head to the loud shouts coming from down the hall, her slightly pointed ears twitching slightly in the process.

"The others are here, I presume?" She asked, cocking her head to the side slightly.

This was the first time Bilbo noticed her long black locks tied into two loose plaits just below her ears."Uh, y-yes." He stutterd.

"Do you know if the one called Dwalin is here?"

As if on cue, the large dwarf stepped out of the kitchen and stepped toward the two.

"Ramses?" He asked gruffly.

"Father!" She spun around and hugged him tightly. Though she was bigger than Bilbo, she looked small compared to the large dwarf.

The two pulled away and he held her at arms length.

"You look more like your mother every time I see you, Ramses!" He smiled. "Come meet the rest of the Company, 'Orcslayer'." He said, giving a throaty laugh and wrapping an arm around her shoulders, Bilbo following quickly enough behind the two.

"OI!" Dwalin grunted, catching the attention of the rowdy dwarves. "This is Ramses. She is my daughter."

"Ramses the Orcslayer?" Fili and Kili asked.

Dwalin smiled and nodded proudly as Ramses blushed and looked down at her boots.

"'Orcslayer'?!" Bilbo asked incredulously, not believing his ears.

"Yes, Orcslayer." She answered shyly.

The dwarves raucous activities soon resumed, this time including the happy voice of Ramses.

The dwarves were making a mess in the dining room , snatching food from plates and throwing it at each other, eating and tossing food around, laughing merrily all the while.

Ori and Kili were watching as Ramses balanced a plump red tomato on the tip of her nose.

"Bombur, catch!" Bofur shouted, throwing what Ramses thought to be an egg straight into his brothers mouth.

The drawves cheered and Kili stole the tomato from Ramses nose and bit into it.

Fili walked over the table, mugs of ale in his hands.

"Who wants an ale?" He asked handing one to Ramses.

"Want another drink?" Dwalin boomed, pouring ale down Oins ear trumpet.

The confused old dwarf put the trumpet to his lips and blew hard, ale spouting out the top. The dwarves laughed even harder.

The sound of clinking mugs soon filled the dining room as al the dwarves crashed the wooden mugs together, the seemingly at once all the dwarves began drinking their ale, it spilled out of their mugs and down their beards as Ramses watched them in wonder.

When each dwarf finished they slammed their mugs down on the table in a spot not occupied by plates or scraps.

The belching started with Nori as a small burp escaped his lips, he quickly apologized to Ramses who laughed.

Ori's burp was by far the longest and loudest changing tones every so often. When he finished all of the dwarves laughed loudly.

Soon the dwarves took to wandering the hobbit hole many ending up in the kitchen.

Nori walked in wiping his mouth with a cloth that had many holes.

The hobbit, Mister Baggins snatched it from him and said, "This is a doily, not a dish cloth!"

"Then why does it have so many holes?" Bofur asked.

"It's supposed to be like that, it's crocheted." The hobbit said.

"Oh! And a wonedrful game it is too! If you've got the balls for it."

Ramses laughed quietly to herself, staring down at her feet.

"Somethin' funny lassie?" Bofur asked walking over and standing next to the smaller dwarf.

She attempted to stifle her laugh, her face going red. Shaking her head no, she clamped a hand over her mouth. She removed her hand and giggled slightly.

Bofur smiled down at the younger dwarf, her cheeks still red.

"I'm going to go talk to Ori." She blushed and hurried out of the kitchen.

Ramses and Ori sat in the dining room, eating little more.

"What do you suppose we do with the plates?" Ramses asked, taking one of the cleared plates from Bombur as he seached for a place to set it on the food laden table.

"Should we ask the hobbit?" Ori asked her.

"I think so." She shrugged.

The two searched for Bilbo and found him speaking with Gandalf.

"Sorry to interrupt," Ori started, "but what should we do with our plates?" He asked.

"Here you go Ori." Fili said, walking towards the two and taking their plates and throwing them down to Kili who stood at the other end of the hall. Kili then threw them to Bifur, who caught them without even turning around.

In the dining room the remaining dwarves butted their knives and forks on the table and scraped them along the knives and forks of the dwarf opposite of them.

"Stop doing that! You'll blunt them!" Bilbo yelped.

"Ooh! Do you hear that lads? He says we'll blunt the knives!" Bofur smiled as the dwarved adde to their rythym by stomping their feet on the floor.

The dwarves began singing.

_Blunt the knives and bent the forks!_

_Smash the bottles and burn the corks!_

_Chip the glasses and crack teh plates!_

_That's what Bilbo Baggins hates-_

_Cut the cloth and tread on the fat!_

_Leave the bones on the bedroom mat!_

_Pour the milk on the pantry floor!_

_Splash the wine on every door!_

_Dump the crocks in a boiling bowl;_

_Pound them up with a thumping pole;_

_And when you've finished, if any are whole,_

_Send them down the hall to roll!_

_That's what Bilbo Baggins hates!_

Of course they did none of these things, but by the time poor Bilbo got through the small crowd of dwarves he was surprised that all the dishes were stacked neatly on the table in the kitchen. The dwarves broke out into laughter once again but were silenced by a loud thumping on the door.

"He is here." Gandalf said.

Ramses didn't know who Gandalf was talking about so she followed him and Bilbo to the front door of the cozy hobbit hole.

The door opened to reveal a man, well dwarf, but a man nonetheless. He was very handsome. He had long black hair, pushed back and out of his eyes. His beard was not long, it was short and scruffy.

_'This must be Thorin Oakenshield, grandson of the king under the mountain, slayer of the pale orc!' _Ramses thought as her mind filled with the stories she heard as a child.


	2. Chapter 2

"I thougt you said this place would be easy to find." Thorin spoke. "I lost my way. Twice."

He began to remove his cloak as he stepped inside the hobbit hole.

"I wouldn't have found it if not for the mark on the door."

"Mark?" Bilbo questioned, "There's no mark on that door! I had it painted a week ago!"

"There is a mark, I put it there myself." Gandal confirmed. Of course Ramses and all the other dwarves knew that there was a mark, a thieves symbol.

Bilbo looked outraged as he looked at Gandalf.

"Bilbo Baggins, I'd like to introduce you to the leader of our company, Thorin Oakenhield."

"So, this is our burglar." Thorin said, taking in all of Bilbo's image before speaking again. "He looks more like a grocer than a buglar."

Some dwarves chuckled and others full out laughed, Ramses just scowled at Thorin. Who did he think he is, walking into Bilbo's home and insulting him. King or not.

"How dare you, Thorin Oakenshield! This is his home you should not speak to him as such!" Ramses was furious. How dare he step into anothers home and walk all over them as if they we're a door mat.

"And who might this be?" Thorin asked Gandalf.

"Oh! Well doesn't that make _all the sense_ in the world!" Ramses growled. "Don't ask me who I am, I'd have no clue!"

"Who are you?" Thorin asked taking a stride towards the younger dwarf.

"Ramses, child of Dwalin." She spoke clearly as she crossed her arms over her chest in defiance, standing up straight.

"A child of Dwalin would know to hold their tongue." Thorin hissed, glaring daggers at the young dwarf.

"And a real king would not insult his host." Ramses seethed.

Thorin seemed taken aback by the remark. Turning on her heel, Ramses stormed down the hallway to a small sitting room where a fire was burning merrily.

To be honest, Ramses felt as if she could do a happy dance.

The dwarves were in quite a state of shock. The small timid dwarven girl that they had spent their evening with had suddenly become a sharp tongued warrior of a woman.

Thorin was still silent with disbelief that such a small creature would dare speak to him that way.

When the dwarves were seated around the dining room table once more, save Ramses, Balin spoke first.

"What news from the meeting in Ered Luin?" He asked. "Do they all come?"

"Aye, envoys from all seven kingdoms." Thorin said proudly.

The information seemed to lift the dwarves spirits even more.

"What do the dwarves of the Iron Hills say? Is Dáin with us?" Dwalin questioned.

Thorin took a deep breath. "They will not come."

Groans and sighs came form the dwarves of Thorin's company.

"They say this quest is ours, and ours alone." Thorin continued.

"Y-You're going on a quest?" Bilbo asked. He had reamined silent ever since Ramses' outburst. He had reminded himself to thank the young dwarf later.

"Bilbo, my dear fellow, let us have a little more light." Gandalf said. "Far to the east, over ranges and rivers, beyond woodlands and wastelands, lies a single solitary peak." Gandal had pulled a map out of his grey robes and unfolded it on the table.

"The Lonely Mountain." Bilbo read.

"Aye." It was Gloin who now spoke. "Oin has read the portents and the portents say it is time!"

"Ravens have been seen flying bac to the mountain, as it was foretold! When the birds of yore return to Erebor, the reign of the beast will end." Oin said.

"What beast?" Bilbo asked.

"Well that would be a reference to Smaug the terrible, chiefest and greatest calamity of our age. Airborne firebreather, teeth like razors, claw like meat hooks, extremely fond of precious metals." Bofur informed a nervous looking Bilbo.

"Yes I know what a dragon is." Bilbo said, mild sass lacing his voice.

Suddenly Ori popped up out of his seat and placed his hands on the table.

"I'm not afraid! I'm up for it!" He spoke loudly. "I'll give him a taste of dwarvish iron right up his jacksie!"

The dwarves laughed as Dori pulled his little brother back down into his seat.

"The task would be difficult enough with an army behind us!" Balin said, silencing the laughs and jeers sent towards Ori. "But we number just fourteen. And not fourteen of the best. Nor brightest."

The dwarves all broke out into chatter once again.

"We may be few in number," Fili said, smacking his hand down on the table to get the attention of the complaining dwarves, "but we're fighters, all of us, to the last one!"

"And do you forget that we have a wizard in our company! Gandalf wil have killed hundreds of dragons in his time!" Kili smiled.

"Oh, well no, I-I-I wouldn't say tha-" Gandalf began but the zard was cut off by Dori.

"How many then?" Dori asked.

"What?"

"How many dragons have you killed?" Dori asked again.

Gandalf seemed to have choked on the smoke from his pipe for he began coughing.

"Go on!" Dori pressed, "Give us a number!"

All at once the dwarves began shouting at eachother and were being so loud that they didn't see or here Ramses as she came into the dining room and stood behind Thorin and next to Bilbo.

"Please,_ please_." Bilbo begged in a failed attempt to silence the shouting dwarves.

A sudden shout from the leader of the company silenced the dwarves shouts. Thorin stood as they all sat.

"If we have read these signs do you think others will have read them too?" Thorin asked. "Rumors have begun to spread. The dragon Smuag has not been seen for sixty years! Eyes look east to the mountain assessing, wondering, weighing the risk. Prehaps the vast wealth of our people lays unprotected. Do we sit back while others claim what is rightfully ours? Or do we seize this chance to take back Erebor!?"

The dwarves cheered.

"You forget that the front gate is sealed!" Balin exclaimed. "There is no way into the mountain."

"That, my dear Balin, is not entirely true." Gandalf grinned, producing a key seemingly with magic.

Thorin's eyes widened and hi jaw dropped.

"How came you by this?" He demanded.

"It was given to me by your father, Thrain, for safe keeping. And it, is yours." Gandalf replied.

Gandalf handed the key to the in awe Thorin. Thorin studied the key under the watchful gaze of Bilbo.

"If there is a key, there _must _be a _door_!" Fili informed the rest of the company.

"These runes speak of a hidden passage to the lower halls." Gandalf pointed to the runes on the side of the map.

Ramses could probably read them if she tried but she decided that she wouldn't bother, for she was already leaning over Thorin's shoulder.

"There's another way in!" Kili grinned.

"Well if we can find it the doors are invisible." Gandalf sighed. "The answer lies somewhere in this map. These are moon runes. I do not have the skills to find them, but there are others who can. The task I have in mind will invole a great deal of stealth and no small amount of courage." Gandalf looked to Bilbo and the little hobbit held his gaze. "They need to be careful and clever or the deed cannot be done."

"That's why we need a burglar!" Ori exclaimed.


End file.
